If your follow the NHL or field hockey you might be familiar with the term “Puck line”. A puckline bet is a form of spread wagering explicitly for hockey. As with point spread or simply spread bets, there is a range set by the sportsbook which is the expected range or spread by which a team is expected to win or lose.
So, then what is the difference between a puck line and spread betting? Puck line employs a fixed spread or range of 1.5 points whereas point spread is any range set according to the bookie’s discretion. Puck lines and spreads are just ways of levelling the betting field between what seems like a longshot and favourites.
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How NHL Puck Line Bets Work
With puck line bets a favourite has 1.5 points automatically subtracted while the underdog gets 1.5 added. This is levels out the potential disadvantage that is faced by the underdog and encourages bets on the longshot. This should not be looked at as a way of bookies benefiting only, because in a puckline bet even when the team you bet on loses your bet can still payout. How? If the final score covers the puckline spread. We will elaborate on how the puck line works and what it means to cover the puckline spread. See our example
Let’s say the puck line before a match are set as follows NHL team 1 +1.5 vs NHL team 2 – 1.5
After the game the score is NHL team 1 3 vs NHL team 2 – 5, a bet on the favourite i.e. NHL team 2 loses even if the team won the game. this is because after the puck spread is considered NHL team 2’s score is lower than the underdog which means they have failed to cover the puckline spread and therefore lose the bet.
NHL Team 2 score 5 -1.5 = 3.5 while NHL Team 1 score is 3 + 1.5 = 4.5
How to Bet Puck line Wagers on Ice Hockey and Field Hockey
Puck line wagers are safer than moneyline bets at times because there is a safety net created by the range. The provision for covering the spread, almost allows room for “error” as it were. Below are the steps Kiwi punters must take when betting online.
- Choose whether you are betting on the underdog or top choice
- Deduct 1.5 from the favourite’s score and add 1.5 to underdog’s score
- if your chosen bet has covered the spread whether your team won or lost, your bet wins
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